The Diabetic Chef

Right foods keep diabetics, or the average Joe, healthy

BY EMILY HAGEDORN, Californian staff writer
e-mail: ehagedorn@bakersfield.com

Like a true food connoisseur, Chris Smith picks out the gems most grocery shoppers pass over: petite French green beans, miniature squash and a box of organic chicken broth, to name a few.

Finding his way through Green Frog Market on Columbus Street, Smith -- aka "The Diabetic Chef" -- loads his cart with the freshest ingredients he finds for a cooking demonstration he's doing the next day for San Joaquin Community Hospital.

The North Carolina-based chef can also cull the healthiest foods from the Coke-and-cookie aisles.

Out of necessity, Smith became an expert on the most beneficial foods to eat after being diagnosed with diabetes at 24, when he was a student at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y.

The progression of diabetes -- a chronic disease that affects roughly 21 million Americans -- is greatly affected by diet, which is why Smith set out to help diabetics get away from the restrictions of bland and boring -- but healthy -- meals.

"I hate the 'diabetic diet.' That's not it at all," said Smith, author of "Cooking with the Diabetic Chef." "This is for anyone who wants to live a healthy lifestyle."

Along with Smith, Kira Wiggins, a registered dietitian at San Joaquin Community Hospital, and Barbara Smith, director of San Joaquin Community Hospital's Buck Owens Wellness Resource Center, strolled the aisles, giving their opinions on how people with diabetes -- along with anyone else who wants to eat healthier -- can spice up their food and leave the fat and sodium behind.

Fast, easy (not fat, greasy)

• Bagged salads and vegetables are great for convenience.

• The pre-packaged carrots with ranch dip and celery sticks with peanut butter are also a healthy, on-the-go option.

• If you have to eat at a fast-food place, choose the salad and soup over fries and a hamburger.

• Kids meals are also a good option for adults.

• A child’s portion is a size that’s more appropriate when it comes to fast food.

Spice it up

• Garlic is a source of antioxidants, which have been shown to reduce the risk of cancer. Look for solid, unblemished bulbs. The freshest ones have a purple tint. Garlic is also a natural blood thinner, which makes it good for people with heart conditions. The pre-pressed garlic in the jar is an option if you’re short on time, but the fresher cloves are best.

• Shallots, small brown-skinned onions, are great to add to sauces.

• Sage, thyme and rosemary are good in soups and are a good sodium replacement.

• Crushed red pepper is often overlooked but can be great for adding warmth to a dish. If you understand how using the pepper works, which is by using a small amount, you can add a degree of heat.

• Poultry seasoning is usually salt-free, so it’s a good item to have in the cupboard. Just be sure to check the label to make sure there’s no sodium.

• In lieu of salt, try lime and lemon juice and zest. They are healthier and good sources of Vitamin C, which helps fight infections.

Grog likes meat

• Redder beef contains less fat, but when it comes to meat, fish is best and then poultry, pork and beef.

• Opt for cuts where the fat has been removed, she said.

• Steer clear of cured ham, which has a lot of sodium and fat in it.

• Skinless meats are the healthiest, though they are not as flavorful. When you cook with the skin on all that fat that’s in the skin melts down into the meat. Buy skinless or take the skins off yourself before cooking.

Food that’ll bite back

• Don’t drink regular soda. That’s the only food that Barbara Smith tells diabetics they shouldn't’t have.

• Stay away from buffet-style restaurants, where people often want to get their money’s worth.

• Don’t get cream-based sauces, like Alfredo, on your pasta. Instead, go for the tomato-based sauces.

Dress it, dip it, oil it

• When it comes to salad dressings, stick to the vinegarettes. With the cream-based, you’re going to have more fat in there.

• Canola oil is the healthiest, in terms of the highest amount of unsaturated fat, which helps lower cholesterol. But olive oil, which has slightly less unsaturated fat, has the best flavor, in Kira Wiggins’ opinion. And while olive oil comes in many forms — virgin, original and light — they all have the same nutritional value.

• Salsa on salads or as a snack with healthy chips is a good option.

Eating: a how-to guide

You can eat just about anything you want within reason, Chris Smith said.

• Moderation, variety and portion control aid healthier eating. A typical healthy meal consists of one half of a nine-inch plate being vegetables. Proteins, like meats, and starches, such as rice or potatoes, should share the other half. The palm of your hand is a good portion size for protein. Some people measure their portions by the size of a deck of cards.

• Check with your doctor or see a dietitian before changing your diet.

• Eating fruits is healthier than drinking juices. There’s more fiber in fruits and less sugar.

• Shop from the perimeter of the grocery store, where the produce and milk products are, and then go through the aisles, if you need to.

To learn more about Chris Smith, go to www.thediabeticchef.com.

To learn more about San Joaquin Community Hospital’s Buck Owens Wellness Resource Center, go to www.sanjoaquinhospital.org/sjch/bowrc or call 321-3737.